


White Day

by Wanderer (Straggler)



Category: X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-14
Updated: 2012-03-14
Packaged: 2017-11-01 22:24:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/361943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Straggler/pseuds/Wanderer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The answer to his questions he was desperate to know lay in Charles’ hand.</p>
            </blockquote>





	White Day

 

Almost every day following the second week of February since he began teaching at the Columbian University, there’s been a small gift placed on the middle of his desk waiting for his arrival every morning.

 

When he first saw it, he had assumed that whoever left it there had made a mistake, perhaps taken a wrong turn at the office and put it on the wrong desk. The second time it happened, he was left with a feeling that maybe, just maybe, it wasn’t a mistake and that he was the intended recipient. On the third morning, his assumptions were proven correct – they were for him.

 

But why?

 

Charles picked it up and held it between his fingers like he did the previous two gifts. The feeling it left on his fingers felt powdery, even after he stowed them away in his drawer. Whenever he brought his hand up to his face, he could smell it, and whenever he touched his lips, he could taste it.

 

It wasn’t bad…

 

But…

 

‘Still trying to figure out who that secret admirer of yours is?’ Erik smirked as he leaned on the doorjamb with arms folded.

 

He regarded the man with a quiet expression on his face for a few moments as he tapped an idle rhythm on the table and then shrugged. ‘Not really, no.’

 

‘Then why are you staring at it as though it would answer all of your questions?’ He asked as he walked towards where Charles sat and leaned on the desk with his hands now in his pockets.

 

He continued with another one-shouldered shrug as he opened up a drawer, pulled out a small box and placed the candy inside, where it piled up with the others of different colors and messages written across them.

 

‘That’s quite a collection,’ he remarked, one eyebrow raised in surprise.

 

‘I’ve been receiving at least one almost every day since…’ he tapped his chin in contemplation, noting the transfer of dusted sugar from his fingers to his face. ‘Valentine’s Day. It’s been about a month since then and I’ve accumulated something close to 50 pieces of candy.’

 

‘And you don’t intend to eat them?’

 

‘I’m diabetic.’

 

Erik’s eyes widened at the confession and he wondered how it is he could’ve known Charles for so long (eight months) and still not know something as important as this. But now that he thought about it, while it wasn’t made obvious, the signs were there.

 

Such as how Charles limits himself to one alcoholic drink at every social gathering and politely declining whenever someone asks if he wants another. How he always asks questions concerning certain parts of the menu before he settles on ordering a dish nobody would ever contemplate. How much consideration he puts into whether or not he wants to eat desserts, and if he does, it’s only for a quarter. And…how he always packs homemade meals instead of dining at the staff cafeteria.

 

The staff cafeteria wasn’t bad, but his packed lunches always looked much better, anyway.

 

‘Is it a serious case?’ Erik asked with a cough, ignoring the slight warble of his voice near the end. If Charles heard it or even noticed at all, he chose not to mention it.

 

‘It’s mild; just the beginning stages of it, so no, it’s not serious,’ he brushed away the powdered sugar from his chin but he could taste it when he swiped his tongue across his bottom lip. ‘If I don’t control my diet or lifestyle choices then it could worsen.’

 

‘I see.’

 

Charles changed the subject in hopes it would get rid of the sudden drop in mood. ‘They’re nice to look at, though,’ he commented lightly as he looked at the candies for a few seconds more before closing the lid and putting them back into the drawer, sliding it shut.

 

‘Do you know who they’re from?’

 

‘No.’

 

‘What do they say?’ He asked softly.

 

‘Generic things – _I love you, be mine, guess who_ – but there were also a combination of two candies with messages like, _will you date me, will you love me, will you say yes_ , and so on and so on,’ he replied with a flippant wave of his hand. ‘I don’t intend to do anything with them. Or anything about them.’

 

‘Oh? Why is that? There’s nothing in the Code of Conduct that prohibits you from dating,’ he said as he placed on hand on the ledge of the desk and gave the timber a light rhythmic tap, all the while eying the drawer that was hiding away all its treasures.

 

‘I have my own code of ethics; I refuse to date students, even if they weren’t attending the same university as the one I’m currently teaching.’

 

He turned his eyes towards Charles and noted the firm set of lips and eyes of an unchangeable blue. He spoke the absolute truth. ‘I see.’ he withdrew his hand back into his pockets and wondered if Charles’ code included fellow professors as well.

 

‘You’re saying that an awful lot,’ he said as he turned in his swivel chair and regarded the man with a raised eyebrow and a smirk on his lips. ‘Can I take it to mean that I’ve momentarily stunned you so speechless that you’ve nothing else to say other than _I see_?’

 

‘Maybe I’m just being polite for want of anything better to say,’ he joked easily as he sidled off the desk and moved towards the office door.

 

‘Polite is hardly in your nature, if I recall correctly,’ he called after him.

 

‘If that were ever the case, I would vehemently deny it and no one would think to question otherwise.’

 

\--

 

As Erik left Charles’ office, nobody noticed the little secret smile he had on his face.

 

\--

 

And as soon as Erik was gone, Charles’ opened the drawer again to look at the box of candied hearts with a knowing smile on his lips, still coated with the lightest sprinkles of dusted sugar.

 

It wasn’t bad.

 

\--

 

_Take it easy_

 

Charles rolled the candy between his fingers and sighed as he turned to look at the bleak weather that reflected his mood outside his office window.

 

It was done.

 

The Board of Directors thought it would be better for the continuing function of their university if they increased the course fees ranging from a meager $1000 to an intense $10,000 per year. So far, forty-five of his students have dropped out of his classes (the course that has an increased fee of $7,500 per annum) and it angered him that the Heads decided to spring this on all of the students without proper announcement. The least they could’ve done was wait until the term was over to put it into affect. Though, it wasn’t just him that suffered a sudden decrease of students – at least five-hundred had left, and more were leaving as the days rolled by, choosing to cut their losses now before their debts became too much.

 

He didn’t blame them.

 

‘Hey,’

 

He closed his eyes to the familiar voice and breathed in meditatively. ‘I wonder if they realize they’re doing more harm to the university than good.’

 

‘I’m sure the thought’s crossed their minds. By now, at least,’ he amended with a casual shrug.

 

‘I don’t really care either way; my salary’s not changed.’

 

‘I don’t think you really care about your salary at all,’ he said as he walked into the office and leaned on the desk beside Charles, a careful expression on his face.

 

He smiled ruefully and agreed. ‘No, I honestly don’t.’ He wouldn’t mind a cut in his earnings as long as it helped the bottom line, but thinking about it, he probably wouldn’t be able to make even the smallest of dents. Not on his own, anyway.

 

‘How are you?’

 

‘Taking it easy,’ he tossed the candy towards Erik, which he caught with deft hands. Charles turned his attention back to the world outside, hiding the genuine smile away from the other.

 

‘Taking advice from a piece of candy, hm?’ He raised his eyebrows in question and returned the sweet back to Charles. ‘Should I be worried?’

 

‘As long as it doesn’t tell me to go _jump off a bridge_ , I think taking advice from candied hearts will do me some good, since I can’t eat it.’

 

‘Ah,’ his mood deflated and he turned his head away in shame. ‘Yes, I forget.’

 

‘It’s OK, you know,’ Charles said as he sat up and took Erik’s hand, whose fingers felt powdery at the tips, and held tight in reassurance. ‘I’m used to it. And it’s a good thing I don’t have to bother with insulin shots. I’ve never liked needles.’

 

A light laugh escaped Erik’s lips as he stood and gave Charles a consoling pat on the shoulder. ‘Chin up.’

 

He relaxed his shoulders at the pick-up and followed the man’s movements. ‘I wonder if they have that for a message.’ He wondered aloud as he eyed the candy and turned it over in his hands. ‘I’m sure they would; it’s simple and easy enough to do.’

 

‘Did you know you can customize messages on it, too?’

 

‘Such as?’ Curious eyes met his for a moment just as Erik turned away towards the door.

 

He gave a teasing shrug and sent the man a parting wave as he left. ‘I don’t know – something kinky, perhaps?’

 

Charles huffed in laughter as he pulled open the first drawer and placed the candy inside a small box. ‘Only you can say that and make it sound endearing,’ he murmured softly to himself as he closed the drawer and set to work.

 

\--

 

Charles honestly couldn’t remember the last time he had this much free time on his hands since the starting of his contract with the university – there was always, always something to do. The paperwork he assigned his class some two weeks previously that were handed in just three mornings ago were finally graded and left in a box settled beside his desk, ready to be handed back at the next lecture. He’s planned his course at least four weeks in advance and he couldn’t see the point of preparing further than that if some of his students couldn’t keep up or didn’t quite understand the material, so rather than waste his own time, he left it as it was. His office hours were still unchanged and his doors were always open, but since the increase in course fees, he’s had a considerable drop of visitors, which was a shame.

 

He sighed as he continued to line up the candies in rows of ten across according to their colors. He noticed that he’s received more blues and reds than any other color.

 

This was where Erik found him.

 

‘What are you doing?’

 

He didn’t bother looking up as he picked up another small handful of sweets from the box and lined them in their designated rows. ‘What does it look like? I’m counting.’

 

‘Is there any particular reason why you’re counting your stash of candied hearts?’ He asked as he stood beside the chair, not wanting to waver the man’s concentration.

 

‘For lack of anything better to do,’ he paused thoughtfully before he added, ‘and mainly out of curiosity.’

 

He laughed and noticed there was easily twice more blue hearts than yellow. ‘And how many have you accumulated?’

 

Charles picked up the box and mumbled to himself as he included, twice, what was left over before confirming. ‘Grand total of 68.’

 

‘Is that so? That makes close to about 2 boxes of them.’

 

Charles smiled as he turned his blue eyes to Erik, bright with mirth. ‘And how would you know that?’

 

The man scoffed. ‘Please, you’re not the only person living with a younger sister.’ Anya was ridiculously fascinated by candied hearts, but it’s possible that she might’ve gotten that obsession from him.

 

He laughed behind a hand and conceded the point. ‘What are you doing tomorrow?’

 

Erik raised an eyebrow at the change in subject before he consulted his inner daily planner. He shrugged in answer. ‘Grade some papers, plan some coursework, put up with some students that try to butter me up for an extension on their essays due in two days just to grate on my nerves. The usual.’

 

Charles smiled in understanding. ‘Ah, the joys of being a professor.’

 

‘ _Joyful_ ,’ he finished with an air of sarcasm.

 

He changed the subject again. ‘You don’t suppose they have an expiration date, do they?’

 

Erik paused a moment to consider it, then realized he really didn’t know how to answer something so seemingly random. ‘I’m no expert when it comes to confectionary, Charles. Why don’t you go do some research on that, since you seem to have so much free time on your hands?’

 

‘Fine,’ he bit out without much force and gave a dismissive wave. ‘Leave me be.’

 

‘Don’t indulge too much,’ he said in farewell and disappeared out of the door, leaving his footsteps to carry on.

 

\--

 

Later on, as far as candied hearts go, they don’t really _expire_ , which is a bit worrisome.

 

Charles also found that food coloring makes for very good paint.

 

\--

 

The door to Charles’ office was close, which was unusual as the man often liked to leave his door open to encourage his students to come in and prod him with questions. But, at the same time, it was _not_ unusual because Charles often left his work to pile up so high that he needed to barricade himself in his office until he whittled them back down to a more manageable level.

 

Erik didn’t bother to knock (like most people do) before he went inside, only to be surprised to find that Charles was actually out of his office. It was empty of Charles, but it was not _empty_. On the desk, propped up on the back of the chair, was a cork board lined with a Morse code of pins and stacked with candied hearts, all spelling out one message.

 

He glanced over his shoulder, to make sure nobody was around before he walked in and closed the door behind him. The closer he came to the board, the more he realized that it was written in the form of a formal letter.

 

 _Very Charles_ , he smirked.

 

It read:

 

 _Dear Secret Admirer,_ (Here, Erik stopped to ponder if Charles knew that _he_ was the secret admirer or if this was just a random shot in the dark. He hoped for the former as he continued on.)

_I suppose I’ll be generic and start off with a poem –_

_Roses are red,_

_Violets are blue,_

_Sugar is sweet…_

_And unfortunately, I’m diabetic, but that’s not the point._ (Over here, Charles inserted a ‘LOL’ candy, no doubt trying to be hip with the times, which only made Erik snicker.)

_Would you be averse to meeting with me today? If not, I’ll be waiting in Olaf’s Café for your arrival. There, I will tell you my answer to your questions._

_Sincerely,_

_CFX_

 

\--

 

Olaf’s Café…

 

The European café famed for their German sourdough breads.

 

 _He knows_.

 

\--

 

Without a second thought, Erik dashed from the office towards the little coffee shop by the corner of Lowe and Holmes Street, where Charles was waiting with a knowing smile on his face and one lone candy in his hand.

 

\--

 

The café was empty.

 

No.

 

It was occupied with many other patrons who were now staring at him like he was a man possessed. The café was not empty, but it was empty of Charles.

 

He tried to ignore the slight pang in his heart as his eyes swept across from one end of the café to another, looking for a man with brunet curls and the brightest blues painted in his eyes. He brushed the ache in his chest as heartburn for having run the entire way almost without stop.  He ought to consider visiting the gym more often.

 

Erik continued to stand by the entrance as he heaved in one short breath after another. He waited even after everybody else had gone back to their business, even if they still occasionally glanced by his way with curiosity etched in their eyes. He remained, even five minutes later when still, there was no sign of the man he wanted to see.

 

Then he saw it, tucked away in the corner of the café where an empty table sat – a small gift placed in the middle.

 

With his heart continuing to thunder in his chest, he gently eased away from the doorway and walked towards the table where he and Charles usually occupied whenever they needed to escape away from their professorial duties (and from pesky Heads doing random checks on their students’ progress).

 

As he drew near enough to see it, a lead weight settled in his gut. It was empty of any message.

 

He held his breath as he picked up the candied heart with steady fingers and turned it the other way. There, he found his answer.

 

\--

 

_Yes_

 

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve noticed that I often dislike (not hate) things I write in parts, because they seem choppy and they don’t seem to add up with the other scenes. But despite that, I keep on going because I’ve already started it so I might as well finish it. AND THEN! When I read all of it in one go without stopping (unless it’s to correct or add something) I notice that it’s actually not too bad; they blend together well enough that it doesn’t look like I ripped a page out from halfway into the story and randomly decided to glue it in there. You know?
> 
> Yeah…anyway...
> 
> Happy White Day, everybody! Thanks for everything!!
> 
> Cheers!!


End file.
